The eclectic mix of old and new in Saigon is the legacy of the many occupiers of the city since the Khmers used the area for hunting five hundred years ago. When the French took control in the late 19th century, they razed the city and rebuilt it in the image of a European capital.

The resulting wide boulevards, elegant French architecture, and leafy ambience remain today, but with a very Asian feel. Sidewalks designed for evening strolls are now lined with food stalls and cafes that spill into the street. The villas left by the French have been converted into the city’s best restaurants, and the wide tree-lined streets are abuzz with motorbikes.

Ho Chi Minh City is actually three cities in one, and the official city limits encompass a vast area stretching nearly from the East Sea to the Cambodian border. However, all the major attractions are in the centre of the city and can be reached easily on foot.

A foray to Chinatown requires wheeled transportation, and there is none better than the city’s ubiquitous mode of transportation, the cyclo. All the sights and sounds of the city can be experienced first-hand and at a leisurely pace, making traveling by cyclo a unique pleasure

Halong Bay is perhaps the most spectacular of Vietnam’s natural wonders. Located in the Gulf of Tonkin 170km from Hanoi, it is an impressive collection of nearly 2,000 islands covering an area in excess of 1,500km forming a spectacular seascape of limestone pillars and cliff faces. The breathtaking scenery and unusual geology of the bay led UNESCO to designate Halong Bay a World Heritage site in 1994.

In fact the bay was formed as a result of millions of years of erosion on the limestone rocks. Then when the last ice age finished, the seas rose as the glaciers melted, flooding the entire area transforming hills into the islands we see today.

Many of the forested islands in the bay have hidden caves and grottoes which are easily explored by boat or kayak. Some of the island caves are filled with a colorful stalagmites and stalactites.

Hanoi is arguably Asia’s most charming capital city. Hanoi, meaning ‘where the river bends’ is a city of broad, tree-lined boulevards, elegant French villas and colonial-era buildings painted in muted hues of yellow and orange. It is also one of Asia’s greenest cities with an abundance of parks and lakes as well as a host of cafes and art galleries and an Old Quarter steeped in history.

The city’s most interesting places for tourists are all relatively close to each other, which makes it easy to enjoy the best parts of the city on foot or by cyclo. You could probably explore well-known landscape in Hanoi such as Literature Temple, One Pillar Pagoda, Sword Lake, West Lake, History Museum, Flag Pole, Ancient city…

Every year, I love to look back at my travels and choose my favorite new destinations of the year.

In 2014, some of my favorite new destinations were Finland, Sri Lanka, and Savannah, Georgia.

In 2013, some of my favorite new destinations were Japan, Macedonia, and Berlin.

In 2012, some of my favorite new destinations were the Faroe Islands, South Africa, and Costa Brava, Spain.

Some years, I just did a big list. Sometimes, I listed my top three along with the others. I think it’s best to think about the year and do what feels right. So this year, in 2015, I’ll be highlighting my favorite new destination of the year and listing the rest.

My Favorite New Destination of the Year: Nicaragua

When thinking about my favorite new destinations from this year, you know what comes to mind? Little Corn Island. San Juan del Sur. Ometepe. And, to a lesser degree, Laguna de Apoyo and León.

Loving each of those places so much, how could Nicaragua not be my favorite new destination of the year? And when you consider their diversity, from funky beach towns to undeveloped islands and colorful, chaotic cities, it’s all the more remarkable.

Ladies – are you sick of hearing the phrase “It’s a man’s world”? Are you tired of people constantly warning you that it’s dangerous for you to travel on your own? Wouldn’t it be nice to explore the world on your own terms and end the reign of others taking you everywhere they’d like to go? If you answered yes to any of these questions, we’ve got some pristine written inspiration coming your way!

Our travel experts at FlipKey have taken it upon themselves to dig up the most exciting, most informative, and most liberating solo female travel blogs that the cyber-world has to offer. The authors of these travel blogs have discovered much about themselves and their dreams through travel and, luckily for us, they decided to pass their stories along. The narratives found in these blogs have much more to offer than mere storytelling and entertainment (while these components are not lacking); they also have the power to inspire women everywhere to live adventurously and intentionally without feeling sheltered by fear, loneliness, or the pressures of a patriarchal society.

With that said, ladies (and gentlemen alike), check out our list of the Top 25 Solo Female Travel Bloggers to Follow in 2015 and start exploring!

A Week at the Beach

I love inspiring busy Moms to travel more, including planning solo getaways.Solo travel doesn’t have to stop once you become a parent. In fact, it may become even more important. Getting away, even for a day or two, is an important way to maintain balance and mental clarity, as well as have some fun! – Sarah, A Week at the Beach @Aweekatthebeach

Alex in Wanderland

I’m a New York native who left my home to explore the world slowly and thoroughly. I’m just a little obsessed with photography, scuba diving, and reading guidebooks to countries I have no immediate plans to visit. – Alex, Alex in Wanderland @wanderlandalex

Anna Everywhere

Anna Everywhere is a blog run by an adventurous female traveling, studying, and living in different places around the world. It’s meant to inspire young women to give them the confidence to go on their own adventures instead of waiting around for someone to go with them. – Anna, Anna Everywhere @1988annalisa

BreatheDreamGo

Breathedreamgo is about travel, travel in India and something more. It’s about getting in touch with long-buried dreams and going after them. The name of the blog is a mantra: “breathe, dream and go.” It’s what I did, following a deep depression, when I was already in my 40s.

Breathedreamgo is largely about travel in India because I feel it is the world’s most transformative travel destination. Seekers have been coming to India since long before “Eat, Pray, Love,” since long before The Beatles. It is said, by some scholars, that Jesus went to India and studied to be a yogi. So if you really want to wake up, really want to change your life — travel in India alone. – Mariellen, BreatheDreamGo @breathedreamgo

Camels and Chocolate

I have worked in the media for more than a decade, both on the magazine and guidebook ends of the spectrum, and my travels–both for work and for leisure–run the gamut of Couchsurfing in Iceland and Airbnb vacations in Rome to cruising in the Arctic and luxury resort stays in Tasmania. I cover a little bit of everything on my site, domestic and international, and hope to show that travel is attainable for the masses. – Kristin, Camels and Chocolate @lunaticatlarge

Candice Does the World

I try to tell it like it is. I’m by no means an expert on anything; I fumble my way around the world, and I have a lot of fun doing it. Honesty in storytelling is the way to go. – Candice, Candice Does the World @candicewalsh

Dangerous Business

I’m just a small-town Ohio girl trying to balance a “normal” life with a desire to discover the world beyond my Midwest bubble. I’m here to prove to people that traveling (and especially traveling as a woman) doesn’t have to be scary, lonely, or out of anybody’s reach. – Amanda, Dangerous Business @dangerousbiz

Flora the Explorer

Flora the Explorer’ is a place for aspiring travellers, avid volunteers and those who want to explore the world through meaningful interaction with local people and their cultures. Through the site’s stories and photographs about long-term, slow travel experiences, I want to evoke the sense of adventure and curiosity we all have – both for the world itself, and our place within it. – Flora, Flora the Explorer @florabaker

Further Bound

I’m Hannah, a 33-year-old writer, designer and truth seeker originally from England. This blog was born of my dream to live a life less ordinary, one filled with honesty, freedom, creativity, adventure and excitement. – Hannah, Further Bound @furtherbound

Grrrl Traveler: The Imperfect Adventures of a Solo Traveler

GRRR Traveler is a travel survival and solo travel site inspiring others to find their GRRR for travel. – Christine, Grrrl Traveler @grrrltraveler

Heart of a Vagabond

Heart of a vagabond – Inspiring responsible & ecological global traveling while empowering solo female travelers. Leave your fears at home, the world is out there waiting to be explored. – Yara, Heart of a Vagabond @heartofvagabond

Hippie in Heels

Solo female travel is possible to do safely and stylishly even in my new home of India. My blog has all the tips to help you plan your trip and see all the most adventurous places. – Rachel, Hippie in Heels @hippie_inheels

Hopscotch The Globe

Whether your a seasoned traveller or have dreams of one day seeing the world, Hopscotch the Globe is your resource for everything internationally inspired. From travel tips and advice to destination guides to food adventures, Kristen and Siya won’t just teach you about the world, but will make you laugh along the way with their very likably en humorous personalities. – Kristen, Hopscotch the Globe @HTGlobe

My Travel Affairs

My Travel Affairs is a blog run by a Crazy Polish Girl Marysia, as well known as The Luckiest Girl in the World. Marysia’s site is a unique mix of jet-setting and off the beaten path affairs with travels. One day you follow her on crazy adventures while hitch-hiking in Iran and few months later she is sailing in Bonifacio. Read for inspiration and for a very original style of writing with a specific sense of humour. – Marysia, My Travel Affairs @mytravelaffairs

Runaway Juno

I named my blog “Runaway Juno” after my name, but I am not actually ‘runaway’ from anything. Since I took a first step into the world of ‘backpacking’, I knew this is going to be a big part of my life. And, I was right. If you are meant to be with something, there’s a sign you can’t describe it by words. That is travel to me. – Juno, Runaway Juno @runawayjuno

Solo Friendly

Gray Cargill of SoloFriendly.com has been happily traveling alone since 1998 and writing about it since 2008. A long-time advocate of solo travel, she hopes that reading about her experiences will encourage other women to stop waiting for a travel partner and pursue their own travel dreams now. – Gray, Solo Friendly @solofriendly

Solo Traveler Blog

A love of travel, personal loss and an empty nest all conspired for me to begin Solo Traveler in 2009. Resonating with thousands of readers, the blog quickly went from personal to public and the Solo Traveler Project began. – Janice, Solo Traveler Blog @solotraveler

The Blonde Abroad

The Blonde Abroad is an award-winning travel and lifestyle blog featuring female travel, fashion, food, festivals and photography from around the world. – Kiersten, The Blonde Abroad @theblondeabroad

The Fearful Adventurer

If your dreams don’t scare you, maybe they’re not big enough? Torre DeRoche from fearfuladventurer.com travels the world following her curiosities, while looking for ways to step outside of her comfort zone in order to see how they move and change her perceptions of the world, it’s people, and what it means to be alive. Bravery, she believes, is not the absence of fear but a willingness to confront it, and it’s this bravery that unlocks rich experiences. – Torre, Fearful Adventurer @fearfulgirl